fहndi - Mahatma Gandhi Antarrashtriya Hindi Vishwavidyalaya

unprincipled propaganda takes placeinstead of logic and artifices. Instead ofbeing a part of power politics his criticismis continuous cultural battle of a writerand an intellectual.Looking at the period of Ram VilasSharma's writings 1934-2000 almost 60 to65 years long, it was an extensive periodwhen in the name of modernization andcolonization of knowledge people weremaking fun of Hindu community's cultureand were murdering history. Commonintellectual perspective was to blindlyfollow the western modernism. Theinfluence of 'New criticism', 'Formalism'and the modernist tendencies wasincreasing on Hindi criticism continually,though not a simple good criticismconcentrating on any writing was comingup. Only they would talk of principles andthere was a plethora of foreign illustrations.At some places they demanded purecriticism that the critics should only thinkabout literary works and criticism shouldbe contained by the propaganda of writers.We know that Ram Vilas Sharma is nota pure critic. Once Albaruni had said,'What type of brahmins are these who wantto carry purity and knowledge together'.The country is changing; the server ofnational popular opinion is down. Thecommunal and feudal powers aresurrounding human life. The past is beingburnt in different ways. On one side thereis communal frenzy and on the otherBhartendu and Premchand are beingattacked. Aggressions are taking place onRamchandra Shukul, Nirala is beingattacked. Besides, there was direpredicament in the culture of Hindi belt.In such conditions Ram Vilas Sharma hadto see what is to be protected in thetraditions and what is to be changed. Wecannot look at Ram Vilas Sharma isolatedfrom the social cultural conditions anddiscussions where they have been created.Definitely he was not a pure critic onlywho leaves social question from criticism.Discussion between Past andPresentThe fight with imperialism cannot beseparated from history and from literaryand cultural traditions. Traditions havegreat importance for Ram Vilas Sharma,the knowledge of tradition is not relatedto past. This is not to dig the corpses ofpast, this is a live interaction with the pastand present. To know the tradition is onething to get to the past like a prized killis another thing. If you get hold of anold popular book by chance, leavingeverything if you look only for places whereHindu feelings are conspicuous or whatis the caste of the writer or how muchis the vitality of caste there or when pastcomes to you like a prized kill, it is notknowing the past. Actually past comes like'foreign' to you. Today many anglicizedintellectuals prefer to study in Americanand European Universities, why to give44 :: April-June 2013fgndi •